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fight heat with heat June 29, 2010

Posted by molly in : soup , 5comments

it’s a bizarre phenomenon, but when it’s unbearably hot and you don’t have air conditioning, eat or drink something that will make you sweat. that lovely built-in temperature control system we all have in our bodies isn’t there for nothing! sweating cools us down – it may not be particularly glamorous, but it gets the job done.

which is why i went for it and made a warm (and spicy) soup for dinner last night, even though our apartment felt like an oven with temperatures in the 80s and no breeze for the past couple of days. our one little fan blasts air in our faces as we sleep, but when said air is muggy and hot, the nights have been restless. i’d just like to stop here and say: i’m not complaining! i love this weather – it reminds me of southern california, and i have been waiting for sunshine and heat like this all year. but in london, without a/c, without a seaside breeze or a pool to jump into when it gets too hot… it can feel a little bit too much.

my mom arrives this weekend and we’re having a bbq on sunday, so hopefully the sun sticks around until then! in the meantime, here is my soup recipe from last night. it is fabulous – i adapted it from a tiny one-paragraph recipe in self magazine (i think??) because i thought the ingredients sounded interesting. before you judge what this might taste like – sweet potato and peanut butter – just try it for yourself. the longer it cooks, the more curry-like it becomes, so you can always turn it into that and scoop up with flatbread or pita instead of slurping from a spoon. either way, we slept like babies last night. i’d like to think it was the soup.

african sweet potato soup

makes 3 servings

the particulars:

  • 1 tbsp canola oil
  • 1 yellow onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 3 sweet potatoes (2 peeled, 1 with skin on), cut into cubes
  • 1 quart vegetable stock (2 pints)
  • 1 can chopped tomatoes
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1 tsp ground cumin
  • 1 tsp madras curry powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne
  • 1/4 cup chunky peanut butter
  1. in a large saucepan, heat up the oil and add the onion and garlic. saute for a few minutes until softened, then add the sweet potato. cook and stir for a minute or two, then add the remaining ingredients.
  2. turn the heat up to bring to a boil, then turn down to simmer and leave to cook (no lid) for about 10 minutes. feel free to serve now, or leave to cook for longer (20 to 30 minutes at least) for more of a stew or curry-like consistency. just make sure to cook until the sweet potatoes are soft enough.
  3. serve hot with wholewheat bread rolls, or flatbread/pita.

cinco de soupo May 6, 2010

Posted by molly in : soup , add a comment

by pure coincidence, we had a dinner last night that was totally relevant to cinco de mayo. obviously, it’s not actually that big of a deal here in london. maybe in some of the mexican restaurants, you’d notice it. but compared to how things went in san diego (try going to ANY bar without being confronted by pinatas and sombreros), it’s nonexistent.

this recipe was slightly adapted from real simple, one of my favorite magazines from the states. they have great recipes, but usually they’re pretty heavy on the meat. luckily, this is a completely vegan dish – and phil couldn’t even guess the secret ingredient. BEER. he calls himself a man…

i’d happily have this again. it’s so easy to make, tastes great, and can be scooped up salsa-style with some tortilla chips, making the whole experience even more fun (messy).

the more you cook it, the more it will resemble black bean chili, so it’s up to you depending on what consistency you’re going for.

black bean soup

serves 2-3

the particulars:

  • 3 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 green bell pepper, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
  • 1 red onion, chopped
  • 1 tbsp ground cumin
  • 2 cans black beans (with salted water)
  • 1 12-ounce bottle lager beer (i used budweiser)
  • 3 red chilis, finely chopped (save one for slicing instead to use as a garnish)
  • handful fresh coriander leaves
  • juice of 1 lime
  1. heat the olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. add the onion and cook for 2 minutes. add the green pepper and garlic and sprinkle with seasoning. cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 8 to 10 minutes. stir in the cumin.
  2. add the beans (with the liquid from the cans as well), lime juice, and beer to the pot. mash some of the beans with a wooden spoon against the edge of the pot. reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the soup is slightly thickened, 6-8 minutes.
  3. serve with a garnish of red chili slices and coriander leaves, and a bowl of plain tortilla chips for dipping.

feeling green April 2, 2010

Posted by molly in : soup , 4comments

i certainly need a bowl full of healthy spinachy goodness today – it’s too bad i’m all out of leftovers from this amazing soup i whipped up a few days ago.

i’ve come down with a nasty bug AGAIN – aches, pains, fever, chills. i blame it entirely on the bizarre weather we’ve been having recently. just when i thought it was springtime, the temperatures dropped again. yesterday there was a random thunderstorm with hail!

so i’m all wrapped up in bed with my laptop, the sound of music on tv, a couple of gossip mags to flip through, and plenty of ice cold water. all i’m hoping is that whatever this is disappears by sunday so i can get on my plane to boston!

spinach, coconut, & rice soup

from a waitrose recipe

the particulars:

  • 1 tbsp cumin seeds
  • 1 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 300ml vegetable stock
  • 1/2 can coconut milk
  • 1 bag spinach
  • 300g cooked brown basmati rice
  • 1 lime, grated zest and juice
  1. gently fry the cumin seeds in the oil until toasted. add the onion and cook until softened. add the stock and coconut milk. bring to the boil, then stir in the spinach and blend until smooth.
  2. return to a medium heat and add the rice. stir until warmed through.
  3. add the lime zest and juice, season and serve.

lesson learned: the original recipe calls for white rice, but just to make it slightly healthier i used brown rice. i don’t think this makes a huge difference in taste though – so feel free to use whichever you prefer.

feeling better March 27, 2010

Posted by molly in : desserts, soup , 4comments

yuck, there’s nothing worse than a stomach bug. i think it’s going around. but thankfully i’m feeling a lot better. thursday morning was terrible, but as the day went on i started to regain my strength. and i think it is mostly due to this (vegetarians/vegans, look away now):

that is an extremely simple (and healing, i like to think) chicken soup with rice noodles. i walked down to this new deli we have in town to pick up a rotisserie chicken, fresh from the spit. YUM. i haven’t had one of those in a very long time (used to get them alllllllllllllll the time in san diego) so i guess you could say it is one of my comfort foods (and i suppose another reason why i could never go fully vegetarian).

so i ripped that bad boy apart and added it to a simple veggie broth with chopped up onion, celery, and carrot. i also threw in some rice noodles and let it bubble for a few minutes. two bowls of that over the course of the day yesterday and i was back to normal!

and then yesterday, i tried my hand at a cake/pie/dessert thing i’ve had bookmarked since i started reading food blogs religiously (a little over a year ago). it’s been something i’ve wanted to make since then and with my renewed appetite, i went to work. i decided to make it in my cast iron skillet. not sure why, just for funsies. i also veganized the recipe and i think it still worked really well (since it’s not your typical cake/pie/dessert thing).

vegan cranberry pie

adapted from nantucket cranberry pie recipe at cooking books

the particulars:

  • 2 cups chopped fresh cranberries (i used frozen)
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 1/2 cups sugar, divided
  • 2 eggs (i used egg replacement powder mixed with warm water)
  • 3/4 cup butter, melted (i used pure sunflower spread)
  • 1 cup spelt flour
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  1. preheat the oven to 350F / gas mark 4.
  2. spread the cranberries, walnuts, and 1/2 cup of the sugar in the bottom of a cake tin or round cast iron skillet.
  3. mix the rest of the ingredients in a bowl to form the batter. pour over the cranberry mixture and bake in the oven for 45 minutes or so. cool a bit in the pan before serving!

lesson learned: the only thing it takes to get over a sickness is a glossy magazine, a bowl of chicken noodle soup (rice noodles for the gluten-free among us), and (if you’re a spotify user) this motown playlist.

to blend or not to blend? March 8, 2010

Posted by molly in : soup , 1 comment so far

good morning world! what a wonderful and relaxing weekend this has been. i hope everyone feels ready for spring – i know i do – i’m sick of the freeze.

yesterday, phil and i were treated to a lovely lunch (which i will be blogging about later) – with the raw brownie for dessert. YUM, by the way.

so for dinner, we wanted something pretty light. however, we have a difference of opinion when it comes to soup. phil prefers his blended – i prefer mine in it’s natural form. i like to be able to see and taste the individual parts of the soup. phil would rather have the smooth consistency. so we compromised – i scooped out a bowl full of soup before he obliterated his with the immersion blender. perfect!

he also had his soup with some cheesy mustard-y toast. to all of you lucky ducks who can tolerate dairy and gluten, i highly suggest having this with your soup. i know phil is enjoying his meal because he goes extremely quiet and gobbles everything up in record time. consider this meal a win.

tomato and cannellini bean soup

serves 4 – first photo is my unblended version, second photo is phil’s blended version with cheesy toast

the particulars:

  1. heat the oil in a large saucepan and add the onion. let it cook for 5 minutes or so before adding the garlic and fennel. fry for a few minutes before, then add the tomato paste. stir to coat everything. cook for 5 minutes.
  2. add the plum tomatoes and vegetable stock. bring to a simmer, then turn down and cook for 15 minutes or more.
  3. add the beans and simmer for 5 minutes. season and serve with a dollop of pesto on top (if you want…)
  4. blend. or don’t.

lesson learned: this is a brilliant take on traditional tomato soup. the fennel and beans bring another dimension to the flavors. if you choose not to blend, it may be better to use something other than plum tomatoes from a can, as these are pretty large and retain their heat (i.e. burnt tongues).